The United Nations Security Council has extended the arms embargo on Sudan’s Darfur region for two months but did not agree on a proposal by the United States to expand the embargo to cover all of Sudan. This decision comes after permanent members Russia and China opposed the broader sanctions.
On Thursday, the 15-member council unanimously adopted Resolution 2830, extending the sanctions regime until December 11, 2026, to allow for further negotiations. The mandate of the panel of experts monitoring the sanctions was also extended until January 11, 2027. The UN characterized the resolution as a short-term "technical rollover," following a previous one-month renewal on September 11.
The sanctions were initially imposed in 2005 under Resolution 1591, which established an arms embargo on armed actors in Darfur, along with a travel ban and asset freeze on designated individuals and entities, and a five-member panel of experts to oversee compliance.
Despite extensive discussions, the United States was unable to gain support for the expansion of the embargo. Russia and China have advocated for maintaining the current sanctions regime. US Ambassador Jeff Bartos stated that the existing sanctions are outdated and do not adequately address the current conflict, urging for an expansion of the arms embargo across Sudan.
In response, Russia’s deputy UN ambassador, Anna Evstigneeva, emphasized that they would not support any broadening of the restrictions on Sudan. Sudan’s UN ambassador, Al-Harith Mohamed, contended that a total embargo would violate the UN Charter’s guarantee of the right to self-defense.
The ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which began in April 2023, has resulted in at least 59,000 fatalities, with aid groups suggesting the actual number may be significantly higher. The conflict has also displaced approximately 13 million people and led to famine in various regions. The Sudanese army controls central and eastern Sudan, while the RSF governs Darfur in the west and parts of the south. Darfur, an area roughly the size of Spain, has experienced severe violence, including attacks on displacement camps and ethnic massacres resulting in thousands of deaths.